Planet X Pinnacle ♦ The Crypt

The Love Nest

The Love Nest

2D ♦ 3D Anaglyph ♦ 3D Half Side-by-Side

(Click to Enlarge)

2D

3D Anaglyph (use red-cyan glasses)

3D Half Side-by-Side (for 3D TV viewing)

A MOUND OF LARGE BOULDERS situated within the horseshoe-shaped curve of Park Blvd., The Love Nest harbors a secret familiar to rock climbers. Randy Vogel, in his Joshua Tree Rock Climbing Guide, explains it this way: “This is the first set of rocks encountered as you walk east from Quail Springs Road [now Park Blvd. —JM] (about .3 miles). The established routes are located on the slightly overhanging south face of the formation. Rattlesnakes are known to hibernate in large numbers under the formation. Watch your step in the spring and fall!”

And so I did. Watch my step. Yet the only dangerous looking critter I saw the day these images were taken was a curious lizard, attentively eyeing me as a possible meal, and deciding I was too large a chunk to digest. The boulder pile is known as The Love Nest from the most distinctive climbing formation on the south side (far right in the above pictures).

Close-up of The Love Nest Boulder, East Side

2D ♦ 3D Anaglyph ♦ 3D Half Side-by-Side

(Click to Enlarge)

2D

3D Anaglyph (use red-cyan glasses)

3D Half Side-by-Side (for 3D TV viewing)

Three top-rated and very difficult routes on this granite monolith, all are 5.11 to 5.12 and three-star quality: Left side: “We Don’t Need No Stinking Badges,” center, “Boys Don’t Cry,” and along the groove, “Shakin’ Like Milk.”

Since The Love Nest and Planet X boulders are part of the same group, my path through them described a meandering figure-8 in order to photograph all sides in one easy go.

Planet X Pinnacle

2D ♦ 3D Anaglyph ♦ 3D Half Side-by-Side

(Click to Enlarge)

2D

3D Anaglyph (use red-cyan glasses)

3D Half Side-by-Side (for 3D TV viewing)

A GROUP OF VERY LARGE BOULDERS lie further east and slightly north of The Love Nest (about 800 yards from the road). In the middle of this impressive clump is a pinnacle scarred by several cracks. The climbs on it include: “Planet Claire,” “Planet Y,” “Saturn Sheets,” “Planet X,” “Inept Tune,” “Planet Z,” and the most favored one whose route clings to the steep edges on the north side, “Subway to Venus.”

3D Anaglyph Gallery ♦ Planet X Pinnacle

3D Half Side-by-Side Gallery ♦ Planet X Pinnacle

Planet X Bouldering Area ♦ The Crypt

At the far northern end of Planet X can be found the tallest formation in the group. This is The Crypt (or in some references it is called The Hang). Climbing routes are on the southeast side facing the road and Cowboy Crags and on some of the boulders at its base. “Tomb Raiders” is the most challenging route at 5.11b; others are “Your Tomb or Mine?,” “The Mummy’s Curse,” “Mummy Dearest,” “Serf’s Up,” “Serf City” and “The Cryptologists.”

2D ♦ 3D Anaglyph ♦ 3D Half Side-by-Side

(Click to Enlarge)

2D

3D Anaglyph (use red-cyan glasses)

3D Half Side-by-Side (for 3D TV viewing)

3D Anaglyph Gallery ♦ Planet X Bouldering

3D Half Side-by-Side Set ♦ Planet X Bouldering

Thank you for visiting Planet X! We trust you enjoyed your 3D excursion and our terse, but satisfyingly inane commentary. Please leave behind any rattlesnakes or sneaky lizards when you depart, they are part of Joshua Tree’s landscape. Have a safe journey back to your home planet. —Commander Murbachi